Hygiene Detective by Initial Malaysiahttps://hygienedetective.com
Fri, 16 Nov 2018 12:10:41 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.6.13Be Careful Parents: Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease Might be on the Risehttps://hygienedetective.com/careful-parents-hand-foot-mouth-disease-might-rise/
Wed, 04 Oct 2017 01:41:55 +0000http://hygienedetective.com/?p=1694Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease is a highly contagious infection. Although most common among young children, older children or adults are not excluded from the risk.

Be Careful Parents: Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease Might be on the Rise

Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (HFMD) is a highly contagious infection. It is said that this disease is most common among young children, but get this; older children or adults are not excluded from the risk. The infection can easily spread from person-to-person through direct contact with unwashed hands or any contaminated surfaces.

HFMD can be unpleasant to have and it usually takes about seven to ten days to clear up. More than 23,000 HFMD cases were reported in Malaysia from January to August 2016. The Health Ministry also reported a spike of 644 cases per week. Due to the high number of cases, particularly from Selangor and Perak, alerts have been sent out by the ministry to create public awareness on the disease.

Children and adults infected with HFMD are quarantined at home for at least 10 days to prevent the infection from spreading. Sharing or using the same dining utensils should also be prevented so that the infection will not be passed down to family members.

Symptoms of Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease

It usually begins with fever, a loss in appetite and sore throat. The painful sores and red spots will start after two days and then often become ulcers which will spread to the tongue, gums and inside of the cheeks. The ulcer can be very painful, making it difficult to eat, drink and swallow.

Rashes and blisters will soon appear after the mouth ulcers, with small red spots on the skin. It typically develops on the fingers, the backs or palms of the hand, and the soles of feet. This will turn into small blisters with a grey centre. Even worse, this occurrence will last up to 10 days and can be itchy as well as uncomfortable at times.

The best thing to do when you have HFMD is to stay at home until you feel better. There is no specific treatment for HFMD; it needs to run its course. During recovery stages, it is best to keep hydrated and eat soft foods such as mashed potatoes, yogurt or soup if eating makes the throat feel uncomfortable. Swishing warm salt water in the mouth is some of the home remedies that can help to relieve the pain coming from mouth ulcers and sore throat. Children can use mouth gels, rinse or spray but make sure to consult your doctor or pharmacist beforehand

Preventing the disease from spreading to others

Someone with HFMD is most infectious just before the symptoms start until they begin to feel better. It is not always possible to avoid contracting the disease, but with simple hygiene steps, it can stop the spreading. Below are simple tips that can be carried out on a daily basis to avoid spreading the infection to one another.

Use tissues to cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze, and then dispose the tissues promptly.

Practise proper hand hygiene on a daily basis after using the washroom, as well as coughing, sneezing, handling nappies, and before preparing a meal.

Refrain from sharing cups, utensils, towels and clothes.

Use a bleach-based household cleaner to disinfect any area or object that might be contaminated. Wash your sheets separately in a hot wash to kill off any contamination.

The infection can be caused by different strains of viruses, so it is possible to occur more than once. Therefore, even after recovery, proper hygiene routine should still be carried out to prevent from contracting it again.

Proper hygiene care is very important on a daily basis, but for some rural areas, they might not even have the basics such as access to clean water, soap or even the right facilities to carry out their business. With the lack of hygiene knowledge, they would not see the importance of maintaining a proper hygiene care.

COHEP is a Community Orientated Health Education Programme advocated by Rentokil Initial Malaysia to educate communities in developing neighbourhoods about the importance of personal and environmental hygiene. The vision is to improve the status and quality of the health conditions as well as providing opportunities for individuals to achieve their full potential. Falling sick affects the body by making it feel weak, interrupting the daily routine and ultimately causing the day to become less productive.

COHEP is an ongoing activity that has been around since 2009. Educational talks were carried in schools nationwide to create awareness about personal hygiene, feminine hygiene, hand, foot and mouth disease as well as Dengue. It targets different age groups from as young as primary to secondary school students.

In 2016, Rentokil Initial Malaysia’s COHEP programme has adopted nine schools all over Malaysia to help build a healthier community within the school. Hand soap, paper towel, toilet seat sanitise and waste bin are among the washroom facilities that Rentokil Initial Malaysia provides to these adopted schools.

As the expert in pest control and hygiene, Rentokil Initial Malaysia aims to make a difference to community with COHEP. And their theme “Better Futures” encompasses their objective to support the local communities in moving towards a better future. The theme also reflects Rentokil Initial’s brand through its alignment with company tagline: Protecting People, Enhancing Lives.

Hygiene Practices to avoid the risk of cross contamination

Illnesses such as hand, foot and mouth disease are usually common amongst children but with the educational help from COHEP, the infection can be handled with proper care or even prevented. Illnesses, diseases and infections work like a chain reaction, if it is not taken care of, it will spread easily from person to person.

The toilet sneeze effect is one of the few key topics that are rarely discussed. It happens when you flush the toilet without closing the lid, spewing germs to the entire washroom. It only takes 60 seconds for an average sized washroom to be covered with bacteria, urine and faecal matter. These droplets remain suspended in the air for several hours, allowing them to spread quickly throughout the washroom and be deposited on surfaces that are often touched, such as toilet seats, dispensers and handles.

Washroom surfaces and toilet bowl water remain contaminated with faecal bacteria even after repeated flushing. Initial’s hygiene experts have done numerous researches on the impacts of the sneeze effect and developed an effective system to reduce the risk. Let’s see how we can scale down the bacteria build up in washrooms with the tips below (2):

Was hands for at least 20 seconds before leaving the washroom and use hand sanitisers for an extra layer of protection for the day.

It is always important to look after our hygiene as our health affects our productivity in our daily activities. Hand, foot and mouth disease is usually common in humid areas, with Malaysia having a humid temperature all year round. Hence, it is important to incorporate a proper hygiene routine into our daily lives to ensure a happy and healthy community that is free of illnesses, infections and diseases.

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]]>Infections You Can Spread If You Don’t Wash Your Handshttps://hygienedetective.com/infections-you-can-spread-if-you-dont-wash-your-hands/
Fri, 22 Sep 2017 02:11:17 +0000http://hygienedetective.com/?p=1703Thorough handwashing is vital in preventing the spread of infections and diseases such as Norovirus infection and Hepatitis A

4 Facts You Need To Know About Hand Hygiene

From a very young age we’ve been told to wash our hands after using the bathroom or before eating/preparing food. While many are aware that this is for hygiene reasons, did you know exactly how important is it to practice proper handwashing behaviour?

Our hands are natural breeding ground for germs. Nearly 80% of infections are spread by hands, hence, practicing good hand washing techniques is one of the easiest and most effective ways of preventing illnesses from spreading. Studies have shown that washing hands regularly with water and soap can reduce diarrhoeal diseases by 50%. This is something that is particularly important in the workplace where large groups of people can catch the same infection.

Imagine picking up a piece of cookie with your bare hand after you’ve touched a contaminated surface. You will then transfer the germs from your hands to the cookie and ultimately to your mouth when you consume the cookie, putting you at risk of of catching gastrointestinal or respiratory infections.

Some of the infections and diseases that can be spread by not practicing good hand hygiene are:

1. Norovirus infections

Norovirus is the most common cause of viral gastroenteritis in humans and it can affect people of all ages. It’s transmitted when people don’t wash their hands and worryingly, they can spread very quickly within large groups of people in close area. This is why when one person gets ill, entire households or offices often catch it too.

2. Airborne illnesses

Respiratory illnesses are usually spread via droplets which are breathed, sneezed or coughed into the air by someone who has the illness. While sneezing and coughing help to spread illnesses, poor hand washing techniques are a big culprit as well.

Common respiratory illnesses caused by poor hand hygiene include common cold, influenza, chickenpox and meningitis.

3. Nosocomial infections

We often hear of infections being transmitted in hospitals and this is often due to staff and patients not washing their hands. Naturally there’s a huge amount of infections present in hospitals and if staffs don’t wash their hands between seeing patients or if people with an infection aren’t practicing good hand hygiene, they can very easily pass their illness onto others.

Some of the most common nosocomial infections which can be spread by germs and bacteria on our hands include Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and E.coli.

4. Hepatitis A

Hepatitis A is a viral infection which can cause severe symptoms including problems with the liver, jaundice, abdominal pain, fever and fatigue. It’s often spread via food which has been contaminated by people preparing them. According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, digesting even microscopic traces of contaminated faecal matter can cause transmission of Hepatitis A.

Spread Hand Hygiene Awareness through Global Handwashing Day

15 October is Global Handwashing Day, an annual campaign celebrated globally to raise awareness on the importance of hand hygiene and also motivate good personal hygiene practices as it is a key approach to disease prevention.

If you wish to find out more about ways to improve your workplace hygiene, speak to our experts now at 1300 882 288!

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Wed, 23 Aug 2017 02:55:56 +0000http://hygienedetective.com/?p=1707Did you know that a simple hand hygiene practice is the basic way to reduce your risk of contamination. Find out how.

4 Facts You Need To Know About Hand Hygiene

Despite the fact that we should wash our hands after using the toilet, 62% of men and 40% of women don’t actually do it. While we might not think there’s anything wrong with this, these hand hygiene facts might make you think twice.

80% of diseases are spread by touch

A staggering 80% of contagious diseases are transferred by touch alone which means that they can be easily prevented by implementing proper hand washing techniques. Touching food with contaminated hands for example spreads harmful bacteria such as Salmonella and E. Coli which can lead to diarrhoeal infection. While diarrhoea remains the second most common cause of childhood death, simple and effective handwashing can reduce diarrhoea rates by 40%.

Damp hands spread bacteria too

Even if you do give your hands a good scrub after using the bathroom, if you don’t dry them thoroughly afterwards, your efforts could be pointless. Only 43% of people claim that they dry their hands after washing which is rather concerning considering that damp hands are 1000 times more likely to spread bacteria than dry hands are.

It’s also important to think about how you’re drying your hands. Re-usable cloths harbour millions of bacteria so try to opt for disposable paper towels or a hand dryer if you can.

Bacteria travels

The problem with not washing your hands is that you then transfer bacteria to everything you touch. You may not think this sounds like a big deal but studies have found:

The average kitchen chopping board has around 200% more faecal bacteria on it than a toilet seat does

Handbags can carry up to 10,000 bacteria per square inch and 30% of bags tested were found to have faecal bacteria on them

Smartphones can carry more than 30,000 bacteria units per swab

The average office desk has 400 times more bacteria on it than a toilet seat does

The average keyboard can also contain more bacteria than a toilet seat

Washing your hands can help fight antibiotic resistance

Washing your hands can prevent around 30% of diarrhoea-related illnesses and approximately 20% of respiratory infections such as colds. Because antibiotics are often prescribed for these health issues, thorough hand washing can help to prevent antibiotic resistance.

Overuse of antibiotic is the single biggest factor causing resistance but if a simple hand wash can prevent illness and the need to take these medicines, it can help to reduce the likelihood that antibiotic resistance will develop.

Scent Marketing Makes Happy Shopper

Sensory marketing has slowly transformed into an important role to drive business revenue. This is because sight, sound and touch are a great way to stimulate the senses, and smell is the most powerful of our five senses as research has shown that 75% of the emotions we generate on a daily basis are affected by smell. Scent marketing is able to speak for your brand, turning branding opportunity to loyalty and best yet, to distinguish your brand from others.

Let’s take a look at the tangible benefits:

Increase traffic

Footfall is the most basic, crucial element for any retailer and intrinsically linked to driving sales. With competition in retail at an all-time high, there has never been a better time to boost it. Our independent research has shown that 74% of consumers have been drawn into a store because of inviting fragrances, making scent marketing a must for professional retailers.

Increase dwell time

Enhancing wellbeing and comfort levels will encourage more time spent in store and a better likelihood of making a purchase. How long a customer stays in a store is directly related to the money they spend and while common tactics include adjusting the store layout to fit consumer habits and creating well-designed interiors, the power of scent should be considered alongside these. Studies have shown that 55% of consumers will speed up their shopping if met with a smell they don’t like whereas in a pleasantly scented stores, consumers tend to increase their dwell time up to 40% longer.

Improve customer perceptions

Creating an atmosphere with a luxurious scent makes customers are more likely to associate positivity with your brand. When questioned about their favourite store, 42% of consumers our study stated that what they liked most about it was the atmosphere and ambience. Evidence from various studies suggests that scent is a much more powerful driver of our perception and behaviour than we think, and that therefore, it is likely that scent plays a large role in helping us shape our store preferences.

Improve customer loyalty

Scent branding has the potential to drive brand affiliation and increase brand loyalty. Signature scents are easily recalled, strengthening emotional connections. 73% of consumers have admitted to having a feeling or a memory instantaneously triggered by a smell. While pleasant smells can increase the sense of well-being and relaxation, truly recognisable scents can trigger an emotional reaction and ultimately, better engagement.

According to Martin Lindstrom, brand building expert and author of Buyology, building a stronger emotional association between customer and brand through multisensory marketing directly translates to higher prices consumers are willing to pay.

We can help you with the right scent marketing strategy for your retail space. For more information on our scent marketing solutions, do visit our Premium Scenting page or you may also contact us at 1300 882 388 to find out how scenting can help make a real difference to your business.